God willing, we’ll all meet again in Spaceballs 2: The Snooze Awakens – at least, that’s what a new rumor has fans believing, but is the sequel actually happening?
Released in 1987, Spaceballs was Mel Brooks’ hilarious parody of Star Wars. Unlike the puerile likes of Date Movie, Epic Movie, and its other dreadful contemporaries, this boasted an extraordinary cast: Bill Pullman and John Candy played Lone Starr and Balf, their version of Han Solo and Chewbacca, while Rick Moranis gave us his twist on the most iconic villain in cinema with Pannakin Crybaby, aka Lord Dark Helmet.
However, it wasn’t lauded when it hit cinemas, initially meeting a rather mixed reaction from critics and moviegoers, plus an uninspiring box office haul of $38 million. It’s become a cult classic in the decades since, and rightly recognized as one of Brooks’ funniest movies.
More than 35 years later, a sequel is supposedly in the works – but is it true?
Is Spaceballs 2: The Snooze Awakens real?
No, Spaceballs 2: The Snooze Awakens isn’t happening, nor is any sequel in development.
Unfortunately, you’ve likely been caught out by YODA BBY ABY, a Facebook page that regularly shares made-up press releases and fake posters – and Spaceballs 2 is its latest viral success.
The caption reads: “SPACEBALLS 2!!!! Get ready for an intergalactic adventure in ‘Spaceballs: The Snooze Awakens’! Mel Brooks, Bill Pullman, and Rick Moranis reunite in this hilarious sequel where Lonestar, now King of Druidia, faces a new threat as Dark Helmet returns with an even more absurd Schwartz ring. The battle for peace and laughter unfolds in theaters this August 2024 – buckle up for a thrilling cosmic showdown!”
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Will Spaceballs 2 ever happen?
Moranis teased talks of a sequel in 2013, titled Spaceballs 3: The Search for Spaceballs 2. “Mel wanted to do a sequel after it became a cult video hit. It wasn’t a box office hit. It was a cult video hit, and MGM wanted to do a sequel,” he told Heeb Magazine.
“And my idea for it was Spaceballs III: The Search for Spaceballs II. And I was unable to make a deal with Mel. I couldn’t make a deal.
“I wasn’t privy to what the budget was or anything, but the deal he presented me, what he wanted me to do, was not workable. It was two or three years later. He wanted me to… it’s better if I don’t get into the particulars of it. Because it is so specific, it’s counter-productive to talk about it. But I was unable to make a deal, and it would have been something I would have wanted to do. But that ship has sailed.”
In 2015, Brooks – who’s now 97 years old – told the Take a Knee podcast that he wanted to make Spaceballs 2: The Search for More Money and release it shortly after The Force Awakens.
Two years later, Brooks said he was talking to MGM about making the follow-up, but it’s yet to come to fruition. Jason Seltzer and Aaron Friedberg, the brain trust behind Meet the Spartans, Vampires Suck, and the other unconscionable mid-2000s parodies, were also interested in a Star Wars spoof – mercifully, it never happened.